David Norris (Independent)

I have listened with great interest to people who are wiser than myself, and in particular I was very impressed and interested in what Senator Sean Barrett, who is an expert in this area, said, namely, that this is imposing a fiscal solution on a monetary matter. I think that is absolutely accurate. I was fascinated by what Senator Reilly said, namely, that there may be some kind of legal mechanism within the Oireachtas whereby we can stop it. Enda threw away our card and that was a disaster. I say unequivocally that this whole treaty is a fraud perpetrated on the entire people of Europe, and everybody knows it. I cannot believe my colleagues on the other side of the House who say that this will impose proper regulation, good housekeeping and all the rest of it. How in the name of God can it do that when it is fundamentally dishonest? The objectives contained in it are unrealistic, unachievable and inhumane. They mark an attempt to place a corrupt, damaged and unsatisfactory system above the welfare of the people, which is always a hopeless and damaging proposition.

We have learned that Fine Gael is strong on geography. The Taoiseach told somebody that Ireland was not Greece. He is perfectly right. As I said the other day, we did not build the Acropolis or start the Olympic Games. We are not responsible for the sculpture of Praxiteles and so forth. Then the Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael Noonan, said Ireland was not Spain. I know that, as Croke Park is not a bull ring. However, the very fraudulence of the treaty is underlined by the fact that Spain signed it and immediately stated it would not live up to its targets. Of course, it will not, as they are mathematically incapable of being reached. People do not like some of the things I say from time to time, but, at least, they will give me credit for being honest and telling the truth, even when it is unpalatable, because people do not like lies or comfortable half truths. I can say for certain that these objectives cannot be met. There is absolutely no way they can be.

I will put up my hands. I voted against the bank bailout. I gave what I considered to be a sophisticated analysis of its economic basis, but it was never reported. I repeated it five times and then gave up. I said: "Nobody bothers. I can only be listened to when I speak about a very specific pigeonhole set of circumstances." I was right. I voted in what turned out to be the correct way every time these financial matters were put to a vote. However, I was an enthusiastic Europhile. I liked the euro, although it was for a very naive and good reason. It made us all feel more European and made it so much easier to travel between countries, as one did not have to endlessly keep changing currency. My response was that simple. However, it does not appear to be working and I do not believe it will work if we tell lies to the people and allow ourselves to be bullied by Frankfurt. That is a great mistake.

To continue the geography lessons for my colleagues on the other side of the House, while Ireland is not Spain or Greece, somebody said recently we did not want to leave Europe. How in the name of God can we leave Europe? Ireland is physically part of it and still part of the European Union. The Europe I have wanted to see all my life is one that has humane values. I recall that when I raised human rights issues at a meeting in Paris of the Conference of Community and European Affairs Committees of Parliaments of the European Union, COSAC, I was told by the then French Foreign Minister that the European contracts at that stage had no human rights protocols. Now they do. That is the way I wish to see it develop.

There might be an inevitability about this. I have said in this House previously that if one looks back on the history of Germany in the 19th century, one sees the strong power, Prussia, and a number of surrounding dukedoms. They started Zollverein, a customs union, which set in place a centrifugal force that was unstoppable and led to the unification of Germany and the German Reich. The same has started in Europe and it can go in one of two ways: it can either move towards a proper, regulated system with a good central bank and so forth, or it will blow apart. I hope it does not blow apart. I wish Europe well. However, we must stand in solidarity with humane values. It is intolerable that people are living in cardboard boxes off Syntagma Square, that there are such levels of unemployment in Spain and that people are being driven out of this country.

Why is no one holding to account those responsible for the entire mess? I refer to Goldman Sachs which cooked the books for the Greeks and the ratings agencies which conspired to put together the toxic bundles that launched the global disaster. They are still at it. They should be held to account and feel the pain, not the ordinary, decent, plain people of Ireland among whom I include myself and every other Member of the House.